RUGBY’S WAR HEROES – Remembering and Educating 1 TEACHERS’ NOTES WA R H EROE S The RFU’s four-year commemoration programme helping clubs and schools to mark the 100th anniversary of the Great War is made up of three key strands: Remembering, Educating and Fundraising. We want to encourage young people to learn about the impact of the Great War where they live, learn and play, particularly in relation to rugby, and have devised two unique research projects for the age groups 7 to 11 and 11 to 18. These are aimed to either stand alone or be incorporated into the curriculum for the coming academic year as a project which can incorporate research skills, ICT, English, Performing Arts and is also an ideal opportunity to deliver a cross curriculum programme. “ The Rugby Footballer makes the finest soldier in the World ” COLONEL DAVIDSON 1/10TH LIVERPOOL SCOTTISH, 1916 RUGBY’S WAR HEROES – Remembering and Educating 2 TEACHERS’ NOTES The project aims to encourage children to learn For about the role of England’s rugby players in the Great War, learning about particular players who went to war and considering who, in the 7-11 modern day, these men remind them of. year olds Attached are the profiles of three England players who fought in the Great War. We suggest that the children pick one of those detailed and compose a short report about what the player was like and the qualities and characteristics they demonstrated. They should then consider who the player reminds them of. ALL PROJECT ENTRIES SHOULD BE SENT BY: Project format: Projects may be submitted in a variety of forms including: written report, drawing, film, poems, songs, drama etc. 31 December 2015 Prize: The best entry will earn the opportunity for a youngster to be an TO: England mascot for a home international game at Twickenham. Four runners up will have the chance to be part of the guard of honour on a match day. Hannah Barrett Rugby’s War Heroes The school or club that submits the best entries will also be given the RFU opportunity for a number of students to join Lewis Moody (former England Twickenham Stadium rugby international player and Rugby World Cup winner) to take a small 200 Whitton Road number of students on a tour of Twickenham Stadium and to the museum. Twickenham TW2 7BA WHAT WE WILL BE LOOKING FOR: • Creativity with their submission • Understanding of the role of the players in the war • Understanding of the role of rugby in the war • Understanding of the characteristics displayed by young men who went to war • Good grammar and spelling (where appropriate) RESOURCES: Rupert Inglis, Edgar Mobbs and Cyril Lowe profiles http://englandrugbyteachersresource.com/putting-it-into-practice/other- subjects/history-WWI http://www.englandrugby.com/about-the-rfu/ww1-commemorations/ https://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/teachers-tv-primary-cross- curriculum-world-war-ii-604420 RUGBY’S WAR HEROES – Remembering and Educating 3 TEACHERS’ NOTES The project aims to encourage young people to For research a rugby war hero, local or international, and consider the qualities demonstrated both in 11-18 the war and on the rugby pitch. Students are asked to research a rugby war hero, detailing the following: year olds • The role of rugby players generally in the Great War • An individual player’s background history: early life, rugby history and their story in the Great War • Qualities that they demonstrated both on the pitch and during the Great ALL PROJECT ENTRIES War and relation to England Rugby’s core values : Teamwork, Respect, SHOULD BE SENT BY: Enjoyment, Discipline and Sportsmanship 31 December 2015 Project Format: Projects may be submitted in a variety of forms including – written report, drawing, film, poems, songs, drama etc. This project can be either TO: individual or group work. Hannah Barrett Prize: The best entry will earn the opportunity for a young person to watch the Rugby’s War Heroes England team train at their Penny Hill Park base, together with three friends, RFU and tickets to a match. Four runners up will also be given the opportunity to Twickenham Stadium attend a match with free tickets. 200 Whitton Road Twickenham The school or club that submits the best entries will also be given the TW2 7BA opportunity for a number of students to join Lewis Moody (former England rugby international player and Rugby World Cup winner) to take a small number of students on a tour of Twickenham Stadium and to the museum. WHAT WE WILL BE LOOKING FOR: • Creativity with their submission • Understanding of the role of the players in the war • Understanding of the role of rugby in the war • Understanding of the characteristics displayed by young men who went to war • Links to the local area • Good grammar and spelling (where appropriate) RESOURCES: Map detailing locations of players http://englandrugbyteachersresource.com/putting-it-into-practice/other- subjects/history-WWI http://www.englandrugby.com/about-the-rfu/ww1-commemorations/ http://www.iwm.org.uk/learning/resources/first-world-war RUGBY’S WAR HEROES – Remembering and Educating 4 Cyril Lowe was born in Holbeach in Lincolnshire in 1891. He went to Dulwich College as a boarder and edited the school magazine. At school he played many sports, and was in the school teams for boxing, athletics, swimming, cricket and rugby. His 1909 unbeaten first 15 rugby squad included five future international players, called the ‘Famous Five’. At 5 ft 6” and only 8.5 stone his school nickname was Titch but he was brilliant playing on the wing. He became famous for his cross-field kicking, speed and Cyril married Ethel Watson in May 1915 and they had two slipperiness near to the tryline and went on to play for daughters Alice and Isabel. He lived to the age of 91 and Cambridge University, Blackheath and, in 1913, England. when he died, in 1983, his 18 tries remained an English record until finally beaten by another RAF pilot, Rory In his first season as an international player England won Underwood, in 1989. every round of the Five Nations Championship for the first time, which would later be called a Grand Slam. The following year England did it again, with Cyril scoring a record eight tries. That same year brought the outbreak of the First World War. Cyril joined the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) as a pilot. He became a ‘Flying Ace’, the name for a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. He received the Military Cross and Distinguished Flying Cross for bravery and is said to have won nine victories in which he shot down over 30 enemy aircraft. In 1917 his plane was shot down by a German pilot. Cyril survived the crash and continued flying until the “ He was said to be one end of the War. He was said to be one of the real people who became the inspiration for W. E. Johns’ fictional of the real people who character Biggles. became the inspiration In 1920 when international rugby started again Cyril was back in the England team. He went on to earn 25 caps in for W.E. Johns’ fictional total, scoring 18 tries, adding two further Grand Slams, in 1921 and 1923, to the ones earned before the War began. character Biggles ” RUGBY’S WAR HEROES – Remembering and Educating 5 Edgar Roberts Mobbs was born in Northampton, one of six children of an engineer and his wife, who came from a background in shoemaking, for which Northampton was famous. He was educated at Bedford Modern School but left He is remembered on the Menin Gate and in Abingdon early to earn a living, being at one time a car salesman Square, Northampton, with his own memorial. His name and later a director of a car company. Although a good is on memorials in Northampton and Olney, as well as sportsman, leaving school at an early age meant Edgar the Northampton club’s in Franklin’s Gardens. Bedford never got the chance to play for his school first team. He Modern School has Mobbs House in his memory, and was soon playing club rugby, first for Olney and then 234 a connecting road from Northampton to the A45 is times for Northampton, captaining them from 1907 until named Edgar Mobbs Way. He is also remembered in an 1913. He captained East Midlands and then played for annual Mobbs Memorial Match, first played in 1921 and England in 1909 and 1910, captaining his country to an continuing to this day. 11-3 victory against France in Paris in 1910. Mobbs never married and had no children. When the war came he was 32 and immediately volunteered but he was “ Mobbs was wounded too old for an officer’s commission so he formed his own special corps, the Sportsman’s Battalion, which became three times, Mentioned a large part of the 7th Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment. They took part in the Battles of Loos, Somme in Despatches twice, and Arras. and awarded the Mobbs was wounded three times, Mentioned in Despatches twice, and awarded the Distinguished Service Distinguished Service Order in 1917. After his third injury, now Colonel of his battalion, he fought with his men in the third Battle of Order in 1917 ” Ypres, known as Passchendaele. Mobbs lost his life at Zillebeke, while attacking a machine gun post. His body has never been found. RUGBY’S WAR HEROES – Remembering and Educating 6 Rupert Edward Inglis was the youngest of seven children and was born in London seven months after his father died.